Since last spring, EU countries have jointly had open borders for the import of Ukrainian agricultural products. This in order to help Ukraine in the war against Russia. Now the support has encountered an unexpected obstacle: Polish farmers.
The farmers of Poland have long complained that the import of agricultural products from Ukraine means unfair and harmful competition. The Polish government has now listened and the import of agricultural products is now banned until at least June 30. It’s about everything from vegetables to milk
Hungary and Bulgaria hang on
The Polish farmers are not alone in fretting over the import rules. Both in Hungary and Bulgaria, farmers have similar complaints. Hungary’s government has already followed Poland’s example and imposed an import freeze, and Bulgaria is considering doing the same.
Criticism from Brussels and Ukraine
In the EU headquarters in Brussels, people are about as angry with Poland as the Polish farmers are with Ukrainian potatoes. A spokesperson for the European Commission writes in an email to the news agency Reuters that decisions regarding trade must be common throughout the EU. From the Ukrainian side, people are also upset about the ban, and point out, according to the news agency AFP, that Ukrainian farmers have it even worse than the Polish ones.
Source: sites.jmk
